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I've had two (hepatitis). No sedation. They give you a local anaesthetic, and there are no pain receptors in the liver itself so NO, it wasn't painful. It did feel very weird, slightly shocking (the sensation of having something poking deep inside, iyswim) but not painful.

Aftewards, you have to lie still on your side for several hours - so make sure you don't drink too much beforehand as the loo isn't an option! The first time I had a bad pain in my shoulder a few minutes after the biopsy, this is referred pain from a nerve and I was given painkillers for it (paracetamol). Wasn't awful, but was unpleasant - the second time it didn't happen. I'm telling you about that in case it happens, so you do'nt worry about it.

They monitor your blood pressure and pulse very regularly for hours after the biopsy, just as a safety precaution in case of bleeding, but other than that the procedure itself if very quick and not as bad as I thought it would be.

I have had one. They did give me light sedation, diazepam iirc and oxygen. It is not a nice feeling, to me it was like getting punched hard there (lower left abdomen) - but it only lasts two seconds. I was a bit tender to touch or if I breathed in very deeply for the rest of the day. That's it. I didn't have to lie on my side for several hours, just a couple, then went home and was fine. It sounded much worse than it actually was

Anyhow, I had an injection of local anaesthetic which stung but bearable. The biopsy was not at all painful but was quite a forceful shove of a big sharp hollow needle into your side. You felt the shove and pressure but didn't hurt.

The referred pain in the shoulder was a bitch but controlled with paracetamol. I was kept in overnight.

I can assure you that my liver biopsy took place with no sedation, but I did have a local anaesthetic (like lignocaine or similar) in my side. This was mid-90s though, so procedures may have changed. The biopsy itself really didn't hurt. Shrugs shoulders